Basil – You say “Bay-sul” I say Baaz-ul” Spicy Sunday

Jun 28, 2010 Herbs and SPices

My sweet basil is growing so nice and bushy in the garden now.  I’m so happy to see all my herbs doing well but my basil…  I just love sweet basil!  Sweet Basil is a great herb to incorporate into baby’s foods for a variety of reasons.  Sweet Basil is so versatile that can make almost any food taste yummy (well maybe not peaches…).    I have to be precise here, I am mentioning sweet basil because there are so many different types of basil.   I also love my lemon basil.

Basil is said to have many healing and medicinal uses, far too many to really post about.   Basil is said to be a digestive aid, to help lower fevers, help make healthy white blood cells and, my favorite and most interesting thing – it is said to have anti-bacterial properties!  How cool is that?  Basil is not an allergenic herb so adding it to baby’s diet should do no harm.

One of the negatives with basil is that it is fragile and tender.  You want to find dark leaves without blemishes or yellow spotting.  If you are harvesting it from your garden, then be gentle when pinching it off.  You may notice that the slightest bumping of the plant may cause it’s scent to waft.  This is because the plant has been bruised, yes this is how sensitive it is.

When cooking with basil, add it during the last 10-15 minutes of cook time so that get the best, most flavorful taste.

Here are a few ways to incorporate basil into foods:  Please make sure all foods are safe and age appropriate for your little one!

Make a basil, tomato and cheese “salad” with a bit of olive oil
Saute zucchini with tomato, garlic and basil
Liven up a spinach quiche by adding tomatoes and basil
Bake a spaghetti squash with olive oil, garlic and basil, tomatoes optional
Add some pesto to warm quinoa, toss in some carrots and yellow squash

My Pesto Recipe

Indgredients:
2 cups of totally packed down in the cup fresh basil leaves
1 or 2 garlic cloves (peeled)
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (eyeball it as you are pureeing)
1/2 cup pine nuts or sunflower hearts (more or less nuts/hearts to your liking)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Add everything but add only 1/4 cup of the olive oil to your food processor or blender.  Whizz into a paste.  Slowly add the remaining olive oil and whizz until smooth.

You can warm and drizzle over pasta for baby, add it meatballs for baby or even drizzle over some cottage cheese.  Enjoy!

Tags: basil, herbs, pesto, Spices